Liviu Marcus
Cars, like all machines, need timely maintenance for them to work smoothly and efficiently. If they are not looked after, your car’s life deteriorates, and you are forced to make unnecessary repairs. To avoid this from happening, you should follow a basic maintenance check once or twice a month just to be sure about the state of your car. If your vehicle has been sluggish in acceleration or the car gas burns too much, then that suggests you need to schedule an engine tune-up.
What is a Car Tune-up?
Tuning the car is unessential until you see extreme changes in the way it is performing. It is necessary to do a tune-up only when, after proper maintenance, your car gets peculiar. A tune-up will give life to the engine, and your car will run as smoothly as when it came from the factory. More often than not, this is done by a total cleaning of the throttle body and tuning the air/fuel mixture a little to help get the performance back. All the choked intakes are cleaned and the carbon buildup anywhere inside the engine is diminished. This is done using a throttle body cleaner. However, if further changes are required, then a computer has to be connected to the ECU and the engine timing has to be configured. This is a complex job that requires skill and therefore it should only be performed by a professional.
Tuning Carburetor Cars
Older cars that do not have EFI are governed by a carburetor. This mechanical component controls the flow of fuel and air that goes into the engine. Fortunately, tuning a carburetor-run car is not that big of a hassle. You only have to know your car and its idling sound. Based on all that information, you can easily tune your car and set the perfect air/fuel mixture. However, beware of messing things up. If you are not careful, you can make the engine run lean or rich, both of which can be harmful to your engine in the long run.
When is Tuning Required?
A carburetor car needs tuning more frequently than an EFI car. The ECU hardly makes any mistakes, but it needs refreshing every 30,000 miles or so. The carburetor, on the other hand, should be adjusted every 10,000 miles or when you feel the need. Loss of power is almost always easy to catch so you should be able to judge when the right time has come. If you want to save yourself from regular tune-ups, you should use good-quality fuel, engine oil, and fuel filters. These products will keep your engine running healthy for a long time without requiring any tuning.
